How does WhatsApp’s username feature compare to Telegram’s? | Explained
The Indian government has moved to block WhatsApp’s upcoming username feature, citing concerns that hiding phone numbers could facilitate fraud and impersonation. The move draws parallels to Telegram, which has faced similar scrutiny and temporary bans in the region.
Why it matters
This conflict highlights the ongoing tension between tech companies prioritizing user privacy and government regulators concerned about digital security and crime.
The Union government has moved to block WhatsApp’s username feature , for which the Meta-owned messaging platform is currently taking reservations. In a notice to the social media platform, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) wrote that hiding phone numbers and only showing usernames “may materially increase the incidence of online fraud, phishing, digital arrest scams and impersonation attacks, by enabling bad actors to solicit and message victims”.
The article presents both the government's security concerns and the platform's privacy-focused feature design.
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